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VANCOUVER, BC - The 2014 B2Gold Junior Provincial Regional Championships kick off this Saturday with over 240 age grade athletes representing their regions in U15 Boys and U16 Girls competitions. Held annually at UBC in Vancouver, the B2Gold PRCs are a key selection tool that allows provincial coaches to observe, evaluate and select athletes for the teams that represent our province at the National Festival Championships in August.

Last year’s junior titles were both lifted by Island teams with the South Island Tide capturing the U15 Boys division and the Vancouver Island Tsunami winning the U16 Girls division.

Back to defend their title under new coach Shane Muldrew who previously coached the Tide U18s, the South Island Tide U15 boys have spent the last few weeks fine-tuning in Victoria after a month of preseason.

“We have been progressing from basic skill sessions to technical and tactical sessions for the team and its specialty groups,” said Muldrew. “Everyone has worked hard in preparation for this year’s PRCs.”

The program will feature a number of returning players, along with several more that are new to representative rugby. The Tide will be in tough against teams from last year’s runner-ups Vancouver as well as sides from rugby hotbed region Fraser Valley.

“Everyone wants to come out on top and everyone wants to take down the reigning champions,” Muldrew added. “We expect hard fought battles with our opposition throughout the competition.”

The Tide programs have fared well during the 2014 season, with their senior women taking the Ruth Hellerud-Brown Cup and the Under-20 men lifting the coveted Dunbar Keg. Muldrew’s young will charges be looking to represent the Island with pride this weekend.

“Our athletes are most excited about playing rugby on a bigger stage and being part of the Tide’s legacy,” Muldrew added.

This weekend’s U15 tournament will also allow selectors from the BC Rugby Happy Water U15 Boys provincial program to see athletes representing their regions in top quality competition. The U15 Boys roster will be selected on Sunday evening and then the program is set to compete in the U16 Men’s B2Gold PRC’s July 4-6 at UBC. Players selected will reassemble for camp on July 1st at UBC and will stay at the residences through the weekend. Check back to www.bcrugby.com for more updates on the Happy Water U15 Boys provincial program.

The U16 Girls Division will feature a double round-robin competition between last year’s champions Vancouver Island Tsunami, Fraser Valley and Vancouver. The competition began last year and the selected athletes for BC went on to win a national championship.

This year’s tournament gets underway on Saturday, June 28 at 12:00pm and wraps on Sunday, June 29 at approximately 2:00pm. BC Rugby will be live-streaming the final U16 Girls match at 12:20pm on Sunday, along with the U15 Boys provincial final at 1:10pm. To view the live stream page, check back to www.bcrugby.com